Ten Tech Toys for Travellers

Handy gadgets for great outdoors

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Oregon Scientific Action Cam ATC3K

The Action Cam was just made for the YouTube generation. It’s a ‘hands-free’ camcorder that you can attach to the handlebars of a bike or onto a crash-helmet, allowing you to capture all the action as you and your friends risk life and limb in whatever insane sporting activity takes your fancy. It’s water-proof and shock-resistant so it should be able to survive most ‘extreme’ sports, and Oregon claims that it can carry on shooting at 30 frames per second even when completely underwater.

There are a number of Action Cam models currently available, so make sure you get the latest ATC3K unit, as this has a wider field of view than previous models and a slot for memory cards with capacity up to 4GB - roughly two hours of video at the Action Cam’s 640 x 470 resolution. The only bad news is that you’ll need to budget extra for the memory card is this isn’t included in the price.

Satmap Active 10

Outdoor GPS devices tend to be more expensive than their in-car counterparts – not least because they need to be much more solidly built in order to survive bad weather and being dropped every now and then as you trek across the Cairngorms.

Satmap’s Active 10 ‘sports GPS’ isn’t the cheapest outdoor model we’ve come across either. However, its rugged design and all-round versatility make it a good option for the more adventurous traveller. The waterproof handheld includes a 3.5in colour screen that's bright enough to view even in poor lighting conditions. Like most outdoor GPS devices, the Active 10 is sold with a basic UK roadmap built in, and you can buy additional maps for various parts of the country, with prices starting at about £30. The Active 10 can even double up as an MP3 player, thanks to its SD memory card slot and headphone socket, so it can help keep your spirits up when the going gets tough.